Myanmar military officials have announced the release of 5,864 prisoners to mark Independence Day, according to government reports.
Myanmar military officials have released 5,864 prisoners, including 180 foreign nationals, in an amnesty that marked the country's 77th anniversary of British colonial rule.
The military said on Saturday that it had ordered the release “on humanitarian and humanitarian grounds” and commuted 144 people to 15 years, according to MRTV television.
The details of what the prisoners were sentenced to by foreign countries, who were to be deported upon release, are not known.
The Associated Press reported that the foreigners released may include four Thai fishermen who were arrested by the Myanmar military in late November after motorboats fired on Thai fishing boats in waters near their border. in the Andaman Sea.
Thailand's prime minister said he hoped the four would be released on Independence Day.
Myanmar regularly grants amnesty to thousands of people to commemorate Buddhist holidays or festivals. Last year the military government announced that it had released more than 9,000 prisoners to demonstrate independence. Similar the release took place in October 2021.
Among those still in prison is the country's former leader, Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. The 79-year-old is serving a 27-year prison sentence on 14 charges the military has brought against him, ranging from lobbying and election fraud to corruption. He denies all charges.
This year's independence day ceremony was held in the city of Naypyidaw in Myanmar and involved 500 delegates from the government and the military.
The speech of Myanmar's military commander Senior General Min Aung Hlaing – who was not present at the event – was discussed by the deputy prime minister and army general, Soe Win.
In his speech, he called on the small armed groups, who have been fighting the military regime for the past four years, to lay down their weapons and “resolve the political issues peacefully”.
Myanmar has been in turmoil since early 2021, when the military overthrew a popularly elected government and brutally suppressed pro-democracy protests, prompting a nationwide crackdown on weapons that have benefited the military.
Two weeks ago the insurgent group known as the Arakan Army seized a large military base in the western part of the country, the second to fall in five months. The group also took 271km (168 miles) to the border with Bangladesh where it captured the town of Maungdaw.